Cuban Socialists Write Scathing Letter To Democrat Socialists For Support Of Castro… What?

I personally do not blame you if you had to read that title more than a couple of times. It makes as little sense to me as it does to you. However, this is where we are today.
 
In an open letter by nine Cuban democratic socialists, the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) received major condemnation for their support of the Castro regime.
 
The letter read: “The support for Castroism revealed in resolution 62 of the recent Convention of the Democratic Socialists of the United States, held in Atlanta, Georgia, can only be explained by two reasons: either the American Socialist Democrats do not know the Cuban reality or they are not socialist or democratic.”
 
I can guarantee that they do not know the “Cuban reality” and are certainly not democratic, but I just have to ask: do these people not know what socialism is?
 
I will get back to that point momentarily. To give you some context, Resolution 62 is a resolution by the DSA to support the Castro regime and condemn American and allied sanctions against the communist state.
 
Resolution 62 states:
 
“Be it resolved, the DSA formally declares itself in solidarity with the Cuban socialist struggle. The DSA unequivocally condemns the economic blockade imposed on Cuba by the United States and its allies, the American military presence in Guantanamo Bay, and any sanctions and actions that would undermine the self-determination of the Cuban people. Be it further resolved, the DSA will move to join the National Network on Cuba (NNOC), an American progressive organization dedicated to opposing acts of imperialist aggression against the Republic of Cuba. Be it finally resolved, within thirty days after passing, the DSA will submit its application for full membership to the National Network on Cuba (NNOC), and will take active measures to pursue full membership status.”
 
In other words, these communist scumbags support the communist regime of Castro and his enslavement of the Cuban people. There is no “Cuban socialist struggle” because the socialists are the ruling class there and all dissenters are either imprisoned or executed. The Cuban people are not allowed to self-determine their fate because the communist regime determines that – that’s the whole point of socialism. There is no “imperialist aggression” against Cuba; it’s a state that murders and enslaves its own citizens. America is sort of against that kind of practice which is why there are economic sanctions placed on it. What’s more, it’s far from a “Republic.” The U.S. is a Republic. Cuba is a communist slave state.
 
But what is interesting about this whole situation is, again, the letter sent by the Cuban socialists who are seemingly against the communist Castro regime and against the DSA regarding their support of it… somehow.
 
Returning to the letter:
 
“You (the DSA) have been in solidarity with a regime maintained by force of arms, murder, imprisonment, repression and compulsory exile of the opponents, which has not held free and democratic elections for more than 60 years, which systematically violates massive [sic] and blatantly the civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights of the Cuban people and is sustained by the repression and monopoly of the economy, information, education and public health.”
 
“They have supported a regime that appropriated by force all lands, industries, factories and large, medium and small companies, private or associated and made them property of a bureaucratic state, which exploits the Cuban workers in slavery and it blocks the economic development of the country, of independent companies of the state of all sizes, whether private or cooperative and the welfare of Cubans.”
 
Reading just these two paragraphs, you would think they were written by capitalistic people making a very good case against socialism/communism. But nope. Immediately following these paragraphs, we find the rest of the letter:
 
“A regime with these characteristics cannot be considered democratic or socialist. The Cuban independence apostle, Jose Marti, envisioned in his article the Future Slavery, the Cuban reality of today, where the all-powerful state and every decision maker would exploit the Cuban workers as if they were slaves, without rights and dependent on the gifts of a totalitarian government.”
 
“In Cuba, there is a system of modern slavery, undemocratic, Stalinist. Is that the social justice that the democratic socialists of the United States claim for that brother town [sic]? Whoever stands in solidarity with that regime does not know him, does not know what is happening in Cuba or is as imposter as Castroism.”
 
“Several Cuban democratic socialists, who have been facing the anti-popular, totalitarian and anti-socialist policies of Castroism for decades, for which some of us have suffered repression and exile, we reject any kind of solidarity with the Castro regime and we do not share the defense of it carried out in that convention for supposed or poorly-informed American democratic socialists.”
 
A scathing, if rather confusing, letter from such Cuban socialists to the DSA. But I just have to return to the question I asked earlier: do these people not know what socialism is?
 
They seemingly claim to be socialists, standing for socialist policies. And yet, they excoriate the communist, totalitarian and all-powerful government, condemn the forceful appropriation of private land and businesses and even go so far as to accuse the DSA members of not actually being democratic or socialist.
 
I agree that they are not democratic. If they were, they would call for Cuba to have democratic elections (much of a sham as they might be) and it hasn’t had one in over half a century. But there is no doubt in my mind that they are socialist, or at least support socialist policies. The desire and mission to make every single industry and land belong to the government is what socialism is all about. Communism is no different, and neither is Fascism.
 
I would say they are all different sides of the same coin, but that analogy doesn’t quite work because there’s three of them (socialism/communism/fascism). But fundamentally, they all strive for and attempt to achieve the same goal: government control of everything, every industry, every land, even every person.
 
Socialism, communism and fascism all make slaves out of their citizens. Case in point is Cuba, but Venezuela is no different, neither are North Korea or China or any other current communist country, and neither was the Soviet Union.
 
I suppose the only thing I could point to as being the reason for these socialists to be against communism is the forceful appropriation of lands and industries, but that still doesn’t make much sense to me. For one, if given the chance, socialists in America would take any and all industry and land by force. It’s the primary reason they are so against the Second Amendment and wish to strip us of our right to bear arms. Secondly, is the argument that the people should’ve given the land and industries willingly as opposed to forcefully taking it from them? Would that somehow make it less communist and more “socialist” as though there is much of a difference at all?
 
While I certainly appreciate anyone, particularly on the Left, attacking the DSA or socialists like AOC, Ilhan Omar, Rashida Tlaib, etc., I was frankly taken aback by this letter, the condemnation and the accusations against the DSA.
 
These Cuban socialists, again, were making a terrific case AGAINST socialism/communism, not for it. Everything the communist regime in Cuba has done, from Che Guevara to the current Castro brother, is befitting of socialism/communism. There is no fundamental difference between the two and the result of both are the same: government control of everything.
 
Venezuela is no better off than Cuba is just because they voted socialism in as opposed to the Cubans who had an armed revolution to bring communism in. The end result is government ownership of every industry, land and person. All citizens of a socialist/communist country are subject to whatever the state determines is allowed and legal. Any dissent can and will be punished, being perceived as a threat to the communist state.
 
I find it very ironic that these Cuban socialists would excoriate the Castro regime and the DSA for sidling up to the Castro regime when they, themselves, ideologically believe in the same exact thing. Choosing between Castro and any other socialist is tantamount to choosing between Stalin and Hitler. The two hated each other and were enemies, but were ultimately one and the same: communist/socialist authoritarians, not because they chose to be but because that’s what their ideology naturally leads to.
 
Isaiah 32:6
“For the fool speaks folly, and his heart is busy with iniquity, to practice ungodliness, to utter error concerning the Lord, to leave the craving of the hungry unsatisfied, and to deprive the thirsty of drink.”